Will Airbnb registry be a self-inflicted wound?
As they try to untangle the apartment block defects mess largely created by self-certification, you might think the last thing NSW politicians would consider would be putting foxes in charge…
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Flat Chat Wrap #37 – Defects loans, Airbnb rules and sex in the spa
It’s a real mixed bag in this week’s Flat Chat Wrap podcast – finance, Airbnb and sneaky sex. Sue Williams and I start our dissection of the week’s strata news…
From The Forum: Dog-minding in a one-bedder
We are all for the entrepreneurial spirit, here at Flat Chat … except when it comes to turning your apartment into a business that has a detrimental effect on other…
Changes bring us a baby-step closer to uniform strata laws
Changes to strata laws are on the way or being considered all over Australia and the first cab off that rank will be modifications to NSW conveyancing laws due to…
OCN blasts ‘hands-off’ regulations after Four Corners TV report
Australia’s main apartment owners’ organisation claims unit residents have been left in the lurch by developers and builders thanks to “hands off” government regulations that allowed the construction of sub-standard…
Why low-cost defects loans are not enough
Despite the first rumblings of discontent among some commentators, NSW seems likely to offer strata owners interest-free loans to rectify defects in apartment buildings. And so they should. In fact,…
How Fireys may save us from holiday let hell
The NSW government released their discussion document of the proposed new short-term letting regulations this week and, of course, they make interesting reading. I will be examining the proposal for…
Building blocks – an engineer on what went wrong and how to fix it
There’s an old joke about engineers – an optimist sees a glass half full, a pessimist sees a glass half empty, an engineer sees a glass that’s not designed for…
Flat Chat Wrap #36 – From block parties to hijacked high-rises
It would be fair to say that Flat Chat’s approach to apartment living and strata law over the years has been robustly non-academic. We use often cite anonymous sources and…
PODCAST: From block parties to hijacked high-rises
It would be fair to say that Flat Chat’s approach to apartment living and strata law over the years has been robustly non-academic. We use often cite anonymous sources, anecdotal…
From the Forum – Ratings sites for blocks, managers and agents
There’s an idea that‘s been floating around for a while now, that we should have a ratings website for good and bad apartment blocks and/or strata managers and rental agents.…
Is the Vertical Village just another urban myth?
A couple of years ago a friend bought an apartment in a small block near Sydney airport. She based her choice on location, the look of the place and, of…